For many voters, Cary’s participation in an instant-runoff voting pilot program was as easy as 1-2-3.

Polly
Jenkins lives in District B in central Cary. She said she had read
several articles about Cary’s instant-runoff voting pilot program and
had no problem with it “since I was prepared.”

Three Cary Town
Council races have the potential for the instant runoff to be used.
There are three candidates for the District B and D and four for an
at-large seat. However, two of the at-large candidates announced their
withdrawal from the campaign but will remain on the ballot. Results of
the elections were not known at the time of publication.

For many Cary voters who were asked, the new ballot seemed pretty easy.

Ed
Bright, who voted in District C in southeast Cary, said Cary’s use of
the instant-runoff voting pilot “sounded like a good idea. I was glad
to see Cary try that out.”

Kelley Reep said she knew “all about”
instant-runoff voting when she cast her ballot in District D in
southwest Cary but “I don’t even think I put a second choice.”

Jerry
Garte of District B in north Cary, said he had no trouble with Cary’s
instant-runoff voting pilot program. “It’s fairly simple,” Garte said.
“It’s a wonder they hadn’t thought of it before.”

Not everyone
was as sanguine. William Meyer, who voted in District B in north Cary,
said he hoped voters are not confused by instant-runoff voting. “I
think by doing that they’ve complicated the system,” Meyer said.

James Edwards, who lives in District A in northwest Cary, said he was not familiar with instant-runoff voting.

Bob
Flaherty of District C in southeast Cary said the instant-runoff voting
was needless on his ballot. “There weren’t that many candidates,” he
said. “It should be very easy in the future.”

One voter had partisan concerns, even though Cary’s elections are nonpartisan.

“I
really think it’s a little confusing, said David Chambers, who voted in
District D in southwest Cary. “A Democrat isn’t generally going to put
a Republican on the ballot.”

For another voter, acceptance of the new method is just a matter of time.

“We’ll
have to try it a time or two,” said Larry Stringfellow of District D in
southwest Cary. “It’ll have to be on the ballot a few times before
people trust it.”

The N.C. General Assembly approved the approach
as a pilot program last year for up to 10 cities in 2007 and 10
counties in 2008. The Town Council agreed in May for Cary to be one of
the cities to try the program. Hendersonville is also participatiing.

Elections
officials and leaders of several election-reform organizations call the
instant runoff a way to give choices back to voters, save counties and
municipalities money and take some money out of politics.

Runoffs
are used in jurisdictions where a majority of the votes cast in a race
are necessary for election and no candidate receives a majority in the
initial tally. In an election using an instant runoff, voters not only
mark their ballots for their first choice for an office but may mark
their second and third choices as well. In a three-person race, for
instance, if the voter’s first choice is not among the top vote
getters, then the remaining candidate who is marked higher on that
ballot would receive the vote.